SS Catherine, Lyon to Avignon 3/22/15 - Live

[jpalbny]

Wednesday, 3/25 – Viviers by night:

 

We were docked by the time dinner was finished, so we decided to bundle up and head out into the night to explore Viviers. I use the ship's Wi-Fi to download a map to my phone so we wouldn't get lost... We love to wander off on our own, so this was a great opportunity! To our great surprise, there was also an Avalon ship docked here with us. Two ships in this tiny place?

 

The ship was docked at the end of a long street that led into the town, called Rhone Allée. Apparently, the river used to course through here before it was filled in, and rerouted through a manmade canal. The town was fairly empty and the street looked almost spooky at night. There are two people in this picture walking back towards the boat dock. We didn't see many others!

 

 

We made our way into town and stopped in the main circle to get our bearings. The Cathedral towered up above us, on a plateau atop a sheer cliff. The map looked like we could get there pretty easily, but that cliff was tall! It's hard to see in this dark picture, but the cliff is beyond the bright streetlight. I'll post a daytime picture later that might show this better. It looked like a pretty impressive climb in the dark, though.

 

 

We followed my map into the main part of town, then cut through progressively smaller and smaller streets, trying to find a way up to the Cathedral. It really felt like we were walking through a Ghost Town!

 

 

We saw a sign for the Cathedral, ducked into a narrow passageway, and started climbing the cobblestone streets. Sooner than we thought possible, we were standing at the front doors – and they were open, with the lights on inside! We soon realized that the Cathedral was open because an Avalon tour group was visiting. Not believing our good fortune, we slipped into the Cathedral like we belonged there, to take a look.

 

 

It seemed that we had caught the tail end of their tour, as the group started filing out soon after we walked in. That gave us a minute to have the place to ourselves, and grab a few pictures:

 

 

We slipped back out into the night, and thanked the priest who locked the door behind us. Once we had exited, we ditched the tour group, and headed off to explore the rest of the high plateau before climbing down to the lower town.

Edited April 11, 2015 by jpalbny

[jpalbny]

Wednesday, 3/25 – Viviers by night, continued:

 

Before continuing, one last shot of the Cathedral interior that wouldn't fit in the last post:

 

 

We explored the grounds of the Cathedral. It looked wild in the bright moonlight. The play between the moonlight and the shadow cast by the trees made for some interesting lighting.

 

 

Once the tour group left we were alone up on the plateau. It felt a little creepy with the wind whipping through the bare trees, and the dim streetlights added to the mood. We felt that we were on the set of a scary movie.

 

 

The moon and clouds were spectacular, though it was getting a little chilly up here:

 

 

The view from the edge of the cliff above town was great, but it was impossible to get a good picture because of the long exposure times. We could see the whole town stretched out below us, to the Rhone, and SS Catherine there waiting for our return. We enjoyed our solitude for a while, and then started to think about descending. After a little searching, we found an alternative exit from the plateau and started downhill to the lower town.

 

 

A leisurely walk back to the ship after this.

Edited April 11, 2015 by jpalbny

[eyeu]

Want to thank JP and Chris for their travel blog through Provence and Burgundy.

Takes lots of time and energy, as well as meticulous planning to pull it off!

The photo editing,notes along the way...and then the transcribing ...wow!!

Thanks....

Seems like you really liked this riverboat cruise!! Can't blame you...one of our favs as well...

keep up the great work...

rick

[dbncsuvet]

I also wanted to thank you for your wonderful photo review. It must sakte many hours for you to post all of these photos, and we all appreciate it! It is definitely making me wish our trip wasn't still over a year away :)

[jpalbny]

Rick and dbncsuvet, thanks for your comments. Yes, it is a lot of work but I also get a lot out of doing these reviews. I enjoy having them to look back on when all is done, and it helps me remember where we were and what we did there. Every once in a while I'll go back and read one of my old ones, just to remember how much fun we had! I also enjoy reading travel logs that others do, so I like to contribute when I can.

 

On some trips my note-taking is better than others. This trip, I stopped taking notes as of yesterday so the faster I can finish, the more I'll remember...

 

This trip was great fun, even though the weather wasn't as warm as we would have liked. The sparse crowds made up for it, and really the only day it was ugly out was earlier today. So it gets better from here!

 

Now, back to finish up Viviers by night...

Edited April 11, 2015 by jpalbny

[jpalbny]

Wednesday, 3/25 – Viviers by night, continued:

 

Another deserted street in the lower town – I am amazed that we haven't seen anyone else walking about. Makes me wonder if people actually live here!

 

 

Back to the Main Square in town, all beautifully lit up but totally deserted.

 

 

Then we had to walk back down the Rhone Allée to the boat. Love the tunnel of trees, even though the trees are bare.

 

 

We didn't stop here to say hello to this dog...

 

 

Back at the dock, SS Catherine was a more welcoming sight. As we returned, we met another couple who were heading out for a walk too. Glad to finally see someone else with a sense of adventure!

 

 

Here's a map of our walking route tonight – it was great fun! A very different way to experience this small town.

 

 

Now, time to unwind with a nightcap in the lounge, then we need to rest up for tomorrow's adventures. We will visit Viviers again by day, and then in the afternoon we are taking the optional tour of Chateauneuf du Pape. Sounds like a fun way to spend my Birthday!

[Host Jazzbeau]

I've been enjoying this entire review, but I especially want to thank you for the Viviers at night postings. On our upcoming AMA cruise we will have to choose one of two evening excursions. (A) "After arriving this evening, you may take a “Ghost Walk” tour through this medieval town, with colorful stories brought to life by local residents." or (B) "As an alternative, take the limited edition Boulangerie Baker's Experience: visit a local boulangerie (bakery) to experience the preparation of French baguettes and the regional specialty confection known as Nougat. We will learn the best techniques for folding, scoring, and baking French baguettes. While the bread is baking in the oven, we have the opportunity to sample varieties of Nougat and other sweets made by the patissier." Tour (B) is only about 1 hour long, so thanks to you I know I have the option of baking bread and then walking the "ghost" route DIY.

[whatnot]

Have been enjoying your post and pictures! Excellent!

 

Looking forward to your review of the Chateauneuf du Pape optional tour. What was the price?

[caviargal]

Jazz, I heard great things about the Ghost Walk. It was not offered on our Provence cruise last year as the entire itinerary was changed due to water levels and we were not in Viviers overnight.

 

On the included AMA Limited Edition Tour to Les Halles, multiple food and wine tastings were included at various stalls. If you are a foodie, it is a great tour.

Edited April 12, 2015 by caviargal

[sharkster77]

JP--enjoying your posts very much. The maps of your walks are intriguing. Are they being created by a GPS phone app, or is it some other device? Thanks in advanced from a tech-challenged person.

[FuelScience]

Thanks for the great review with all the pics. Enjoying being a virtual cruiser with you!

 

FuelScience

[jpalbny]

I've been enjoying this entire review, but I especially want to thank you for the Viviers at night postings. On our upcoming AMA cruise we will have to choose one of two evening excursions. (A) "After arriving this evening, you may take a “Ghost Walk” tour through this medieval town, with colorful stories brought to life by local residents." or (B) "As an alternative, take the limited edition Boulangerie Baker's Experience: visit a local boulangerie (bakery) to experience the preparation of French baguettes and the regional specialty confection known as Nougat. We will learn the best techniques for folding, scoring, and baking French baguettes. While the bread is baking in the oven, we have the opportunity to sample varieties of Nougat and other sweets made by the patissier." Tour (B) is only about 1 hour long, so thanks to you I know I have the option of baking bread and then walking the "ghost" route DIY.

 

Yes, it's easy to get around Viviers. And the CD said it's totally safe. The scariest part was the sign about the vicious dog... Google maps has suddenly become much easier to use offline; every day I'd download the appropriate map to my offline cache, using the ship's Wi-Fi. Then I could open Google Maps and use my phone's GPS to locate myself on the map, and voila! Instant tour guide. :)

 

On the included AMA Limited Edition Tour to Les Halles, multiple food and wine tastings were included at various stalls. If you are a foodie, it is a great tour.

 

Sounds better than our tour. If I had it to do over again, I would have wandered the markets by myself and bought a few samples to taste. The quenelles that we tasted were lame and the wine wasn't too memorable either. Oh well; overall, we were well wined and dined so I can't really complain!

[jpalbny]

JP--enjoying your posts very much. The maps of your walks are intriguing. Are they being created by a GPS phone app, or is it some other device? Thanks in advanced from a tech-challenged person.

 

I am a total tech nerd... Chris sometimes smiles and shakes her head at me. The maps of our walks are done using an app called Run Keeper. Though it's mainly for runners, to map their workouts so that they can annoy their friends by bragging about their latest running accomplishment, I find it's very useful to turn it on when we're hiking somewhere, or just wandering about a city, taking in the sights... That way, we can remember where we walked that day.

 

If I really need to, I can export a .gpx track of any of these walks, and use that track to geotag any photo that was taken during the walk. I usually don't bother with that, since our cameras now have built-in GPS and geotag the photos automatically. But, handy if you want to figure out where your photos were taken, and therefore, what the heck you were taking pictures OF. ;)

[jpalbny]

Have been enjoying your post and pictures! Excellent!

 

Looking forward to your review of the Chateauneuf du Pape optional tour. What was the price?

 

Thanks so much. The CdP tour was €83. Luckily we had OBC to pay for it, and with the exchange rate being so poor, $300 became €270 for the two of us to share. Great deal; last year, our $300 only got us €210 on the Rhine...

 

Thanks for the great review with all the pics. Enjoying being a virtual cruiser with you!

 

FuelScience

 

Thank you, FuelScience. I'm enjoying telling this story, but it gets pretty busy now with all the optional tours coming up, and the bigger cities of Avignon and Arles on the horizon.

[caviargal]

 

Sounds better than our tour. If I had it to do over again, I would have wandered the markets by myself and bought a few samples to taste.!

 

We plan to take the tram and spend more time at the market this trip. We are all about local foods and wines and this time we will skip breakfast on the boat and make up for it at Les Halles.:)

 

Your day to day, inclusion of daily programs and description of tours has been very helpful; thanks for taking the time to do this. It looks like we will be DIYing it even more than usual on this cruise based on what is included and the kind of experiences we enjoy. The upside to that is that this gives us more time for some private wine tastings and nice meals in port.

Edited April 12, 2015 by caviargal

[jpalbny]

Thursday 3/26 – Viviers by day:

 

Late tour this morning, so luckily we could sleep in a little after our late-night escapades last night. We decided some celebrating was in order so we had Mimosas with breakfast. Our server Miroslav was happy to set us up:

 

 

As we assembled on the pier, we noticed that Uniworld was getting ready to celebrate my birthday too!

 

 

Our tour guide met us and we set off, down Rhone Allée again, only this time the view was a little clearer and the lighting a little better. I love this tunnel of trees!

 

 

Nice blue sky today, which was very welcome after yesterday's cold and dreary rain.

 

 

We ended up back in the main square - this picture is roughly the same as one I posted earlier, by night. The Cathedral sits up on the plateau, above the cliff walls. It's much easier to climb from the other side...

 

 

Our guide stopped here for a while, and told us a little about herself and the town. She said that everyone in town knows each other because the population is very small – only a few thousand. And, she is the only person of Indian descent in town! She moved here, of course, for love.

 

Back into the small streets, again with the cathedral as our destination. We don't see too many cars driving on these tiny streets, thankfully!

 

 

It's a little easier navigating today since we have a guide, and it's light out! Charming place, either way. But so empty! It is neat to be in a place that seems so far off the beaten path.

Edited April 13, 2015 by jpalbny

[jpalbny]

Thursday 3/26 – Viviers by day, continued:

 

A few architectural sights from this charming small town – statuary,

 

 

Random carvings – columns, etc:

 

 

A statue by someone's front door,

 

 

A street that can't decide whether or not it's a flight of stairs?

 

 

Above everything, the ruins of a tower remind us of the days when the clergy barricaded itself up on the plateau, and built fortifications to protect themselves from the common folk, who were confined to the lower town.

 

 

Thankfully, the current occupants of the Cathedral are much more welcoming these days! A little more climbing, and we'll be there (again)!

[jpalbny]

Thursday 3/26 – Viviers by day, continued:

 

We finally finished climbing to the Cathedral for our second visit. In the daylight, the fortress-like walls surrounding it seem much more impressive!

 

 

And it's a little easier to take pictures today as well.

 

 

Inside, the ceiling soars above you and the interior of the Cathedral looks light and airy today, in daylight. I love the intricate patterns that are apparent in these vaulted ceilings. This is the smallest Cathedral in France, however.

 

 

Inside, we were treated to an organ concert by the priest himself! We recognized him from last night – he is a busy fellow! Here he is, taking a bow after the performance. In addition to several more “traditional” pieces, he played a song from Pirates of the Caribbean for us! Pretty strange, sitting in a Cathedral while that song played.

 

 

Outside, we enjoyed a different view compared with last night. It's beautiful here, with bright sunshine, but still pretty windy.

 

 

This looked like a fun hill to climb, but there won't be time for that today. It might interfere with our wine tasting schedule!

 

 

Time for a few more overview shots of the town before we head back down.

[jpalbny]

Thursday 3/26 – Viviers by day, continued:

 

A few more shots of the town. The horlage (clock tower) has a metal sculpture on top of it that was lit up nicely last night. I have about 20 blurry pictures of it that aren't worth posting, but it was pretty at night. Oh well...

 

 

This roof (lower right of the picture) was apparently destroyed some time ago by an explosion, and hasn't yet been repaired.

 

 

Another church that will remain nameless. It is an impressive-looking structure, flying buttresses and all. But Google doesn't show a name on the map where it is located. They are falling down on the job!

 

 

And a view of the main traffic circle in the lower town. Rhone Allée starts here, and heads upwards to the right, all the way to SS Catherine, docked on the far right of this picture.

 

 

We headed down, and here are a few more street views. I love these archways which are spanning the narrow streets, supporting the buildings on either side. They always give me the feeling that I'm walking in a medieval village.

 

 

And the facade of this house is interesting – it's the Maison des Chevaliers (House of Knights). If you were rich and famous back in the day, you could have your face carved here. The difference between a house like this, which has been recently restored, and the older houses that are in rougher shape, is striking. This is not a rich town, so it's not postcard-pretty in many areas. But that makes it more real to me.

 

 

Back down to the village, where we'll have some “surprise” encounters with the locals. We're going to a ceramic shop for a demonstration, then (of course) wine tasting. I suspect that they know we're coming, though.

[jpalbny]

Thursday 3/26 – Viviers by day, wrapping up:

 

I am having a great time reading random signs, posts, etc on this trip. It's helping my French vocabulary, and some of them give you a really funny slice of local life. Here's another in the series of local oddities. Apparently the dogs in Viviers are not only vicious, but they are inconsiderate in their bathroom habits! Or the owners. Either way, I found the sign amusing.

 

 

Off to the ceramic shop where the proprietor demonstrated his prowess on the potter's wheel. He only spoke French but I was able to catch a lot of what he said before our guide translated. In addition to utilitarian items, they make items such as this escargot toothpick holder, and a planter with a cityscape of Viviers.

 

 

The wine tasting was nice. We had homemade bread with olives, and pitchers of local Viogner to taste. The sunshine was warm, the company was fun, and the contrast with yesterday was impressive. Our host offered me some more Viogner, and I told him that I was happy to have more so that he wouldn't get stuck having to finish the whole pitcher by himself. He laughed and poured me a bigger glass...

 

Now, all that was left to do was to wander down Rhone Allée to the ship for lunch. Here is a map of our walk today – shorter than last night, but I was happy that our guide took pretty much the same way to the Cathedral that we had found on our own last night.

 

 

Here is a map showing our docking location (gold star).

 

 

One more tip: if you walk downstream a minute from the boat, (downward, as my map is oriented), you will come to a clearing where you can get a great view of Viviers. Here's a shot from that location:

 

 

Now, off to lunch and then our tour of Chateauneuf du Pape!

[Los_Pepes]

I have been enjoying your pictures very much so thanks. I am sure you have covered this already, but two quick questions:

 

Your cruise started in Lyon. Correct?

 

Which towns/cites did you spend the entire evening or the boat stayed late?

 

Thanks!

[jpalbny]

I have been enjoying your pictures very much so thanks. I am sure you have covered this already, but two quick questions:

 

Your cruise started in Lyon. Correct?

 

Which towns/cites did you spend the entire evening or the boat stayed late?

 

Thanks!

 

 

 

Thanks, Los_Pepes.

 

We started in Lyon. The route is confusing because we went from Lyon (north) to Avignon (south). But, our first stop after Lyon was Burgundy, even further north. Then we returned to Lyon for a second visit after Burgundy. That night, we stayed in Lyon until about 11PM.

 

We arrived in Avignon on Thursday night, spent Friday in Avignon, then stayed overnight again, sailed to Tarascon early Saturday AM, and back to Avignon Saturday night.

 

So - one late night in Lyon. One overnight in Viviers. Three overnights in Avignon.

Edited April 13, 2015 by jpalbny

[Los_Pepes]

Perfect! Thanks. Do you feel as if you had to enough time to wander around and enjoy unstructured and unplanned activities? My wife and I like to go into towns while on river cruises and either have dinner and/or drinks to soak in some local flavor and culture.

[dbncsuvet]

I was also wondering how much free time you have in Lyon. Do you also have time on the first day (day of embarkation) to see Lyon on your own? I have some friends there and want to know if there will be enough time to catch up with them a bit or if I should get in a day early.

 

Thanks!

[jpalbny]

Perfect! Thanks. Do you feel as if you had to enough time to wander around and enjoy unstructured and unplanned activities? My wife and I like to go into towns while on river cruises and either have dinner and/or drinks to soak in some local flavor and culture.

 

Yes - and remember, you can always skip the included tours entirely. There were several where we left early, to do more sightseeing that we had planned on our own, which is always an option as well. The tour guides are perfectly fine if you want to slip away; just let them know so that they aren't looking for you when it's time to head back.

 

In both Arles and Lyon there were Uniworld shuttles available to transport you back to the ship if you wanted to spend extra time in those cities on your own.

 

I was also wondering how much free time you have in Lyon. Do you also have time on the first day (day of embarkation) to see Lyon on your own? I have some friends there and want to know if there will be enough time to catch up with them a bit or if I should get in a day early.

 

Thanks!

 

That is totally dependent on when you arrive, and how much time you want to spend with your friends. The ship sails for Burgundy at 6:00 and all-aboard is 5:30. We had a few hours, but that's because we took a later train from Paris and arrived at 1:00. After lunch, we had enough time to see the sights on Fourvière Hill before coming back for sail-away.

 

Had we not been revisiting Lyon 2 days later, we would have definitely wanted more time. In that case, we would have skipped Paris altogether and taken the train from CDG on Saturday.